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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. track — a song
  3. track — a path
  4. march — the month
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. march — music
  12. dip — to sink
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. rash — hasty
  16. swing — music
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. track — to keep track
  21. swing — to play on
  22. rash — a series
  23. swing — in golf
  24. dip — to dunk

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com